Written in the Stars
by Livienne
Summary: Looking at her now, he realized he didn't know what he wanted in this moment—or, at least, that was what he told himself. But the way her eyes flickered, and her fingers combed through her bangs, tucking a loose strand behind her ear, he knew they both knew what was still in the dark between them. — Brandon/Stella


**Notes:** Hey, guys. Long time, no see?

I know, I know—I've started another multi-chaptered story. I should be working on other stories, and I promise I am, but this was just something I've been toying around with for a while now, and it refused to leave me alone until I had something written for it.

I'd also like to preface this by saying that this is just an introduction. It's meant to be short and a bit vague as it lacks context, but it will all start to make sense afterward. This is mainly written to set the tone for the rest of the story.

But just to give _some_ context, this story takes place right after season one—or just before Brandon and Stella start dating again. I'm not exactly sure when that happened in the series. I just know they sort of broke up for a while because of the whole identity swap situation between Brandon and Sky. In fact, there is a scene in episode twenty-one in 4Kids dub where Brandon and Stella agree to be friends, and then suddenly they're dating again a few episodes later. I've always felt like their transition from friends/exes to lovers was a bit rushed and glossed over in the show. So I thought I'd explore a bit more about that period of time where they were just friends, navigating through their conflicted feelings and rebuilding trust in their relationship.

**Pairing:** Brandon/Stella

**Genres: **Romance | Hurt/Comfort | Drama | Angst

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**Prologue**

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Stella hesitated, tugging at the drawstrings of his borrowed jacket, then raised her gaze to meet his. Her eyes were clear under the streetlamps, flecked with bright golds and warm ambers, and she was looking at him in a way she never had before. "Thank you," she said, in the end, breath light, "for the ride."

"Yeah," Brandon breathed, voice hollow. "Anytime."

Looking at her now, he realized he didn't know what he wanted at this moment—or, at least, that was what he told himself. But the way her eyes flickered, and her fingers combed through her bangs, tucking a loose strand behind her ear, he knew they both knew what was still in the dark between them. Brandon wanted to say something about what happened, to bring the words out in the open, because he'd never liked the idea of hiding any part of himself from her, but every attempt between here and now had always ended the same way they always had, like ashes in the air, faded to dust and dwindled down to nothing.

So he pushed himself off his levi bike, shrugging off any remnants of bitter awkwardness, fixing an easy-going grin on his face as he recovered his good-natured humor and brushed a chaste kiss on her cheek. "Until next time, princess."

And just when he pulled away from her, those treacherous, treacherous honey-gold eyes twinkled through thick, long lashes, the corners of her lips lifted in a faint smile, and for a moment his mind emptied itself of all thought, lost to the effect she had on him. He knew he should've pulled away, put distance between them, and just stayed away from her, but he couldn't. It was stupid, he thought, because this wasn't him, and she was no longer his. She wasn't supposed to have this kind of hold on him anymore, she couldn't, she shouldn't—but she did. She was the sun, the moon, and all of the stars, and like a moth drawn to a flame, he was just hopelessly caught in the afterglow.

Stella patted him on the cheek, and he blinked, broken out of his stupor.

"Buy me flowers next time." Her voice was playful, and he could trace the amusement in her expression as she tossed her blonde locks over her shoulder, sauntering off toward the gates of her school. It was only when she'd reached the gates that she paused to glance past her shoulder at him, and when she did, the previous hints of her amusement were erased, softened instead by a curve of a smile, and he felt that betraying flutter in his chest again. "Good night, Brandon."

He nodded, understanding, and returned her smile as he tried not to look too disappointed. "Good night, Stella."

And this right here was the tricky part, because this girl was anything but predictable, anything but ordinary, and he rather thought he liked it. But he knew he shouldn't. He knew he had to stop thinking about things like him and her, things that blurred the fine line friends weren't supposed to cross. He couldn't afford that.

Losing her once was already hard enough.

Losing her twice was unthinkable.


End file.
